Grammy nominations shine on Canadian artists

TORONTO (Billboard) - In a strong year for Canadian talent,
acts ranging from alt-rock band Arcade Fire to polka king
Walter Ostanek have tallied up no fewer than 20 Grammy Award
nominations among them.

Leading the pack with four is pop singer/songwriter Leslie
Feist, who goes by her last name. Among her mentions, best new
artist, which has not been won by a Canadian since
(American-born) Robert Goulet in 1962.

Joni Mitchell and Michael Buble each received two
nominations. Power-rock trio Rush will be hoping for its first
ever Grammy, for rock instrumental performance.

"When a Canadian receives a nomination," said Ken Kirkwood,
director of product at the HMV Canada retail chain, "they're
usually (already) a household name here, but the added
attention and focus they receive always helps in selling more
CDs."

Kirkwood said Feist would likely benefit significantly from
her nominations. Her CD "The Reminder," a contender for pop
vocal album, has sold more than 500,000 copies in the United
States and Canada, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

In Canada, weekly sales soared to 4,100 from 2,400
following the December 6 Grammy announcement. Unfortunately for
Feist, she will be competing with six-time nominee Amy
Winehouse in three of her four categories.

Buble saw weekly sales of "Call Me Irresponsible," a
contender for traditional pop vocal album, increase to nearly
7,000 from around 4,000 in the same period. It is currently No.
9 on the Canadian pop chart.